Top Shelf Graphic Novels Win Three PubWest Book Design Awards!

Congratulations are in order for Top Shelf's lead designer Chris Ross, along with creators Ray Fawkes, Vince Locke, Troy Little, and Jeff Lemire!

This afternoon, the Publishers Association of the West announced the winners of their 2016 PubWest Book Design Awards, featuring no less than three "Gold" awards for Top Shelf graphic novels:

Junction True by Ray Fawkes & Vince Locke
Production Managers: Chris Staros, Chris Ross, and Veronica HaasDesigner: Chris Ross
Printer: Asia Pacific Offset
Inspired by its themes of surgical body-modification and interlocking parts, Junction True features an exposed spine and a vellum "skin" (dust jacket) which can be removed, inverted, and re-attached — which not only completes the circular painting on the cover, it also reveals a secret message coded into the flaps.

Hunter S. Thompson’s Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas adapted by Troy Little
Production Managers: Chris Staros and Chris RossDesigners: Troy Little and Chris Ross
Printer: Tri Vision Company
The cover design to Hunter S. Thompson’s Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (color-coded to the "American Dream" which animates the book's plot) pays subtle tribute to previous visual adaptations of Thompson's work, while breaking new ground with the bold energy that characterizes Troy Little's style. A shimmering spot gloss on the front cover highlights the "bats" which Mr. Duke famously hallucinates in the book's iconic opening scene — are they truly there? Or only in your head?

Essex County (Slipcase Edition) by Jeff Lemire
Production Managers: Chris Staros and Chris RossDesigners: Chris Ross and Jeff Lemire
Printer: Tri Vision Company
The cloth-bound limited slipcase edition of Essex County is an elegant celebration of one of Top Shelf's most critically acclaimed works. Two haunting sketches by Jeff Lemire of the book's enigmatic crow were transferred to a red foil-stamp on either side of the slipcase, while the book itself bears the image of the orphaned protagonist Lester in his superhero costume.

Congratulations to all the winners — these books are not just great comics, they're truly spectacular art objects.